adminMashudu Netsianda Senior Reporter
THE Zimbabwe Farmers Union (ZFU) has urged banks to speed up releasing loans for farmers, saying delays were likely to affect the farming season. The Bankers’ Association of Zimbabwe recently announced a $620 million loan facility to support agriculture. In an interview yesterday, ZFU second vice-president Mr Abdul Nyathi urged banks to start distributing money so that they buy inputs following the onset of the rainy season.
“The financial sector announced a $620 million loan facility but as farmers we have not yet accessed the money. We therefore urge banks to speed up the process so that we buy inputs on time as we are now approaching the farming season.
“The delay in giving out the money is likely to affect production, particularly for A1 farmers, who are into commercial farming,” said Mr Nyathi.
Mr Nyathi praised the Government for recently unveiling a $161 million facility to fund the agriculture sector.
The money is for the Government’s input support programme targeting 1,6 million communal, old resettled, small-scale and A1 farmers. The basic input package under the programme includes 10kg of maize/small grain seed, 50kg compound D fertiliser, 50kg ammonium nitrate fertiliser and 50kg lime to improve the quality of the soil.
“Farmers should now gear up for the farming season and start clearing their land following the onset of the rainy season. We should start planting early and we also want to commend the Government for distributing inputs early,” said Mr Nyathi. In Matabeleland South more than 6 000 households have received seed maize under the Presidential Inputs Scheme for the 2013-14 farming season.
The Minister of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development, Dr Joseph Made, said the 2013-14 season was the last season in which the Government would provide direct input support to farmers as focus would now turn to subsidising manufacturers to lower input costs.
The Meteorological Services Department advised farmers to ensure that they take advantage of the first rains by planting early.
There are also indications that the country would receive normal-to-above-normal rainfall in the first half of the summer cropping season, raising hope that agricultural production will increase.
Online Reporter